Formation episode 13 - Purity, Disgust and the Meaning of Love

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One of the observations that psychologists make is that while our disgust reflex is designed to help us determine what is suitable for us to eat, we often extend this innate reflex into the social, moral and spiritual domains of our lives. Historically, human beings have found all sorts of ways to determine who is clean and who is unclean. Who is pure and holy, and who is dirty and sinful. Our community becomes an extension of our body, and so if we deem people as unclean or impure, then we will find ways to get them outside of our community so that we won’t become tainted by their uncleanness. So how does the Jesus story offer a different way of encountering the other, and in what ways might Jesus subvert definitions of holiness in profound but disruptive ways?